EPA: UF will pay a $175,000 fine

Improper disposal of a toxic chemical is cited. Risk of human exposure is low.

By Thomas StewartCorrespondent

Published: Tuesday, December 29, 2009 at 6:01 a.m.

Last Modified: Monday, December 28, 2009 at 11:42 p.m.

The University of Florida has agreed to pay a fine of $175,000 for alleged environmental violations that include illegally disposing of hundreds of gallons of a toxic chemical on campus over almost two decades, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday.

The chemical, a solvent used to clean lawn mowers and weed eaters, has been found above levels allowed by the EPA in the soil and groundwater surrounding the UF grounds department on Radio Road east of Southwest 34th Street.

UF and EPA officials, however, agree the level of contamination is low and the risk of human exposure minimal. UF has since stopped using the chemical.

"As soon as UF learned of the EPA's concerns, we stopped using the product," said UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes.

The disposal of the chemical and the other alleged violations were discovered during an unannounced EPA inspection in March 2008. Inspectors found that UF employees were spraying lawn equipment with a degreasing agent that was allowed to dry and then washed off with a hose. Though the washing occurred on a concrete pad, some of the chemical may have found its way into the soil and groundwater by seeping through cracks in the pad or making its way to a nearby stormwater drain, inspectors noted in their report.

Since the inspection, UF has spent about $67,000 determining the level of contamination, according to Sikes. Once testing is complete and a cleanup plan is in place, UF will be required to pay for its implementation.

The chemical in question, tetrachloroethylene, or PCE, is often used for metal degreasing and by dry cleaners, according to the Department of Health and Human Service's Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

At high levels, exposure can cause dizziness, headaches, confusion, nausea, unconsciousness and even death, according to the agency. In animals, it has been linked to kidney and liver damage as well as tumors. Health effects at low levels of exposure are not known.

UF has tested for the contamination by drilling wells to monitor the groundwater and by analyzing soil samples taken from the area.

In one test, conducted in May, levels of the chemical were found to be more than 25 times the allowed levels, though UF questions the validity of the results.

Bill Properzio, director of UF's Environmental Health and Safety Department, said he believes the drilling methods were flawed.

"There was some contamination in the upper surface in the soil," Properzio said. "As they drilled the well, they pushed that contaminant down with it."

Subsequent tests seem to confirm that idea. A later test of the same well, done in August, shows the chemical is present at less than twice the allowed level.

Most soil samples fall close to or below the allowed levels of the chemical, though one sample from July shows a level five times higher than the limit. Tests indicate that levels of the chemical in the water and soil are decreasing or staying about the same over time.

According to UF and the EPA, there is little chance the chemical will come into contact with people. UF gets its drinking water from Gainesville Regional Utilities, not wells on campus, and the soil contamination seems to be limited to the area near the concrete wash pad at the grounds department.

Properzio said employees were simply following the manufacturer's directions when using the product and did not think they were in violation of EPA regulations.

"I guess the assumption had been made (that) if you followed the manufacturer's instructions, you were OK," he said.

The inspection report notes that UF may have used between 275 and 412.5 gallons of the chemical over an 18-year period at that site. Properzio said not all of that was deposited in the soil. Much of it simply evaporated as it was left to dry, he said.

As a result, the level of contamination isn't very serious, he said, especially when compared to a site like Cabot-Koppers, the Superfund site in north Gainesville.

"This is a little leak of cleaning agent," he said.

Davina Marraccini, an EPA spokeswoman, said the agency takes any improper release of toxic chemicals into the environment seriously, which is why UF received the level of fine that it did. The length of time a violation has occurred is also taken into account, she said.

Since the alleged violations were discovered in 2008, UF has been accused of other violations by the EPA, though it is not clear if they will result in fines.

Many of the violations noted during a July 2009 inspection included waste materials, like paint, that were unlabeled, which would mean they were being stored illegally.

The EPA also took issue again with the way UF cleaned its lawn maintenance equipment. The possible violations resulted in a warning letter sent to UF in August, instructing UF to stop allowing runoff from the washing of its weed eaters, lawn mowers and dye sprayers used in the football stadium and on the practice football field to soak into the ground.

Violations were also found in a 2006 inspection that resulted in a fine of about $21,000 and a remediation cost of $5,000.

<p>The University of Florida has agreed to pay a fine of $175,000 for alleged environmental violations that include illegally disposing of hundreds of gallons of a toxic chemical on campus over almost two decades, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday.</p><p>The chemical, a solvent used to clean lawn mowers and weed eaters, has been found above levels allowed by the EPA in the soil and groundwater surrounding the UF grounds department on Radio Road east of Southwest 34th Street.</p><p>UF and EPA officials, however, agree the level of contamination is low and the risk of human exposure minimal. UF has since stopped using the chemical.</p><p>"As soon as UF learned of the EPA's concerns, we stopped using the product," said UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes.</p><p>The disposal of the chemical and the other alleged violations were discovered during an unannounced EPA inspection in March 2008. Inspectors found that UF employees were spraying lawn equipment with a degreasing agent that was allowed to dry and then washed off with a hose. Though the washing occurred on a concrete pad, some of the chemical may have found its way into the soil and groundwater by seeping through cracks in the pad or making its way to a nearby stormwater drain, inspectors noted in their report.</p><p>Since the inspection, UF has spent about $67,000 determining the level of contamination, according to Sikes. Once testing is complete and a cleanup plan is in place, UF will be required to pay for its implementation.</p><p>The chemical in question, tetrachloroethylene, or PCE, is often used for metal degreasing and by dry cleaners, according to the Department of Health and Human Service's Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.</p><p>At high levels, exposure can cause dizziness, headaches, confusion, nausea, unconsciousness and even death, according to the agency. In animals, it has been linked to kidney and liver damage as well as tumors. Health effects at low levels of exposure are not known.</p><p>UF has tested for the contamination by drilling wells to monitor the groundwater and by analyzing soil samples taken from the area.</p><p>In one test, conducted in May, levels of the chemical were found to be more than 25 times the allowed levels, though UF questions the validity of the results.</p><p>Bill Properzio, director of UF's Environmental Health and Safety Department, said he believes the drilling methods were flawed.</p><p>"There was some contamination in the upper surface in the soil," Properzio said. "As they drilled the well, they pushed that contaminant down with it."</p><p>Subsequent tests seem to confirm that idea. A later test of the same well, done in August, shows the chemical is present at less than twice the allowed level.</p><p>Most soil samples fall close to or below the allowed levels of the chemical, though one sample from July shows a level five times higher than the limit. Tests indicate that levels of the chemical in the water and soil are decreasing or staying about the same over time.</p><p>According to UF and the EPA, there is little chance the chemical will come into contact with people. UF gets its drinking water from Gainesville Regional Utilities, not wells on campus, and the soil contamination seems to be limited to the area near the concrete wash pad at the grounds department.</p><p>Properzio said employees were simply following the manufacturer's directions when using the product and did not think they were in violation of EPA regulations.</p><p>"I guess the assumption had been made (that) if you followed the manufacturer's instructions, you were OK," he said.</p><p>The inspection report notes that UF may have used between 275 and 412.5 gallons of the chemical over an 18-year period at that site. Properzio said not all of that was deposited in the soil. Much of it simply evaporated as it was left to dry, he said.</p><p>As a result, the level of contamination isn't very serious, he said, especially when compared to a site like Cabot-Koppers, the Superfund site in north Gainesville.</p><p>"This is a little leak of cleaning agent," he said.</p><p>Davina Marraccini, an EPA spokeswoman, said the agency takes any improper release of toxic chemicals into the environment seriously, which is why UF received the level of fine that it did. The length of time a violation has occurred is also taken into account, she said.</p><p>Since the alleged violations were discovered in 2008, UF has been accused of other violations by the EPA, though it is not clear if they will result in fines.</p><p>Many of the violations noted during a July 2009 inspection included waste materials, like paint, that were unlabeled, which would mean they were being stored illegally.</p><p>The EPA also took issue again with the way UF cleaned its lawn maintenance equipment. The possible violations resulted in a warning letter sent to UF in August, instructing UF to stop allowing runoff from the washing of its weed eaters, lawn mowers and dye sprayers used in the football stadium and on the practice football field to soak into the ground.</p><p>Violations were also found in a 2006 inspection that resulted in a fine of about $21,000 and a remediation cost of $5,000.</p>